Process of splitting mica



. G11. BANCROFT.

PROCESS OF SPLITTING MICA.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 4. 1919.

Pa tented July 5, 1921. 2' 5 awake GJ. Ban crofz.

UNITED STA-res Application filed March 4,

To all whom it may concern.

Be it known that I, GEORGE J. BANOROFT, acitizen of the United States, residing at the city and county of Denver and State of Colorado, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Processes of Splitting Mica; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a; part of this specification.

' My invention relates broadly andgenerally speaking to a process of disintegrating minerals by explosive force, but the use of theinvention which I have more particularly'in mind is for splitting crude mica. Mica splittings are leaves of mica about as. thick astissue paper. These leaves are very valuable as compared with the crude mica,.the latter being" worth about 1 per pound, while the leaves or mica splittings are worth 60 'per pound. These splittings, so far as I am aware, are now made by hand. I have made splittings by exploding the mica with steama I placed the mica in a closed vessel or container with water, and heated the same. When thepressure was high, I suddenly opened one end of the vessel and the mica exploded into splittin The active agentis the water between t e leav of the mica, which is in a condition of unstable equilibrium at the moment of release. It suddenly expandsjnto steam, separating the leaves.

It is evident that the process is not limited to splitting mica, but may be employed for the disintegrationof. other inerals. So far as I am aware, practically a I of the present methods of'disintegrating minerals or other hard substances may be classified under two general heads, namely, (first) by'abrasion-a simple example of which is the common fileand (second) by external pressure-,a good example of which is the common stamp mill.

My present'invention consists, as I believe, of a radically new principle, namely, the dis-- integration of minerals by an explosive force within the substance of the material. This i is not akin to an (Explosion of powder, which has been introduced in one particular and localized part of the material, but is an explosion which is introduced throughout every PROCESSOF SPLITTING MICA.

Specification of Letters Patent.

PATENT OFFICE;

01? DENVER, COLORADO.

Patented July 5 1921 1919. Serial No. 280,570.

portion of the material to be disintegrated. To be more specific, I have accomplished this by the following means:

I have built a machine consisting of a relatlvely large, bottle-shaped container, having a steam-tight valve hinged'to its nozzle and held 1n place during the pressure-generating part of the process by a releasable trigger. The material, as crude mica, to be exploded is first soaked in water until all the cleavage planes are full of water. It is then'introduced into the container. Then, in addition to the water which is in the'material, there is added a sufiicient additional amount to generate the steam which is required and to leave a small excess besides. Then the steamtight valve is closed and heat is applied to the container, which is made stationary by suitable anchorage. There is a steam age at the rear extremity, or the end opposite the mouthor neck of the container, which gage registers the steam pressure. When suflicient' pressure has been attained to accomplish the disintegration of the particular materialunder treatment, the trigger is pulled and the hinged valve released. At the time of the release of the closure valve, the moisture which is inthe material is in a state of unequal equilibrium and as soon as the pressure the material, as mica, asbestos, wood for wood pulp, etc.-

n In further expla nation of the/process, I

will'refer to the accompanying drawing,.in

which is illustrated one form of apparatus which may be employed in carrying out or practising the same, though it must be understood that the invention is not limited to any particular mechanical construction, as various forms of ployed.

In the, accompan Figure 1 is a si ofgapparatus.

in drawing: e eIevat'on of one form apparatus may be em-- the container, which may be of any suitable strength that may be necessary in view of the pressure required in carrying out the process. As shown in the drawing, the rear extremity ofthe container is threaded to receive a screw flange, 6, having a collar, 7.

This extremity of the container is closed by a disk 8, which is secured to the flange by suitable fastening devices, as bolts 9. Mounted on the head 8 of the container is a pressure gage 10, which is in communication with the chamber of the container by a e opposite extremity, 13 or the nozzle of the container, is threaded to receive a screw flange 14, having a collar, 15. A valve cap 16 is provided with an integral bar 17, one end of which is hingedly' connected, as

' shown at 18, to a bolt, 19, mounted on the in osition, for use, or closed.

flange 14. The free end of the bar 17 extends slightly beyond the cap and is adapted to be enga ed for locking purposes by a trigger, 20, w ich is hingedly connected, as shown at 21, to a bolt 22, mounted on the flange 14. This trigger has an arm, 23, ex tending beyond the pivot or fulcrum and connected therewith is a pull rod or cable, 24, which may be utilized for releasing the trigger when it is desired to explode the contents of the container.

In Figs. 1 and 2, the container is shown 11 carrying out the process, the container is charged with a water-soaked material, as

mica, and some additional water added, as

heretofore explained. The nozzle of the container is then closed, the valve cap being seated in a circular groove, 25, of the flange, 14, the trigger serving to hold the valve in the closed position and to make the container airand steam-tight.

. Heat is then applied to the container by the use of oil or gas burners, 26. suitably connected with a supply pipe, 27, and the heating of the container is continued until the gage indicates that the desired pressure is attained. The trigger will then be actuated to release the valve, which will fly'open or assume the position shown in- Fig. 4.

The sudden release of the pressure in the container results in the explosion, which disintegrates the material under treatment, or splits the crude mica into the thin leaves of which the relatively thick pieces are composed, the force with which the material is driven against the air also contributing to the proper performance of the disintegrating, or mica-splitting function.

I claim:

1. The herein described disintegrating process, consisting in heating water-soaked material in a closed container until the desired pressure is attained, and opening the container to release said pressure suddenly.

2. A process of treating material, as mica,

asbestos, wood, etc., consisting in first soaking the material in water, placing the material containing free water thus soaked up in a fluid-tight container, heating it'until a considerable pressure is attained, and suddenly opening the container to release said pressure.

3. The herein described mica-splitting process, consisting in soaking the crude mica in water, placing it while it contains free water thus soaked up in a fluid-tight container, subjecting the contents to heat to produce pressure, and suddenly opening the container to release said pressure.

4. The herein described mica-splitting process, consisting in soaking crude mica in water, placing it in a fluid-tight container containing free water, subjectin the contents to heat in the presence 0 said free water until a considerable pressure is attained, and opening the container to the atmosphere to release said pressure.

5. A process of treating material such as mica, asbestos and wood, consisting in soaking the material in water, placing the soaked material in a fluid-tight container containing free water, heating the contents of the container to develo considerable pressure, 

